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Saturday, March 4, 2017

The Canadian Sampler at Sew Sisters

Last year, the wonderful women at Sew Sisters contacted me to inquire about my contributing a block to a very special sampler they were putting together to celebrate Canada's 150th birthday.

I said yes, of course - I'm thrilled to be in the wonderful company of many amazing Canadian quilters and designers. Icing on the cake was the fact that Sew Sisters compensated me and all of the designers for our contributions. Too often, creative people are expected to give of their time and talents without being offered fair compensation (and no, 'exposure' doesn't count). Thanks, Sew Sisters!

My block is called Maple Leaf 4 Ever (geddit? there are 4 smaller Maple Leaf blocks that comprise the full block).

The block uses a lot of HSTs, my relationship with which is long and can best be described as love/hate. Love the look and design possibilities, hate the trimming.

I've discovered some tools over the past little while that have helped me with my HSTs. First up is the BlocLoc ruler. If you make your HSTs using a method that creates HST units slightly larger than necessary to allow trimming for accuracy, then you're aware of the drudgery of trimming. The BlocLoc ruler has a channel along the diagonal that "locks" onto the diagonal seam of the HST and makes trimming a dream. They're not cheap but to me, the time saving and improved accuracy is worth it. Bonus tool is a rotating cutting mat, but it's not necessary to get the benefit of the ruler.

My other HST tool is Thangles. Thangles allow you to piece HSTs using a combination of strips and foundation paper piecing. I tend to use them if I'm making many HSTs from the same two fabrics. The HSTs that get made are quite accurate and don't need trimming after they're made.

NOTE: I received no compensation from BlocLoc or Thangles, and I don't benefit in any way if you purchase them. I just wanted to share these tools with you because I use them and find them to be really helpful.